Sunday, February 23, 2014

The Church was built in 1935 as a place of worship for the pioneer families of the Mackenzie country. Congregations of the 3 main Churches worship regularly in the Church, which offers awe inspiring views of the lake and mountains through the altar window.The foundation stone was laid by HRH the Duke of Gloucester, on January 15, 1935.The builders of the Church were instructed that the site was to be left undisturbed, and that even the matagouri bushes surrounding the building were to remain. Rocks which happened to be on the wall lines were not to be removed. The stones for the wall were to be procured within a radius of 5 miles of the site, and were to be unchipped and in their natural condition.The Church of the Good Shepherd is interdenominational and services are held regularly throughout the year. ~ Bernard

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

The Church was built in 1935 as a place of worship for the pioneer families of the Mackenzie country. Congregations of the 3 main Churches worship regularly in the Church, which offers awe inspiring views of the lake and mountains through the altar window.The foundation stone was laid by HRH the Duke of Gloucester, on January 15, 1935.

The builders of the Church were instructed that the site was to be left undisturbed, and that even the matagouri bushes surrounding the building were to remain. Rocks which happened to be on the wall lines were not to be removed. The stones for the wall were to be procured within a radius of 5 miles of the site, and were to be unchipped and in their natural condition.

The Church of the Good Shepherd is interdenominational and services are held regularly throughout the year. ~ Bernard

Thursday, February 13, 2014

On the summit of Mount John is the University of Canterbury's astronomical observatory. During the day its domes can be seen from the Tekapo township. The mountain was chosen as the best observatory site in New Zealand because of its high number of clear nights throughout the year, the stability and transparency of the atmosphere and the uniquely dark skies in the Mackenzie Basin, devoid of city light pollution. It is internationally recognised as one of the best-situated observatories for viewing the southern night skies. For example, the Magellanic Clouds (satellite galaxies to our own Milky Way) can be seen continuously throughout the year. ~ Bernard